this article points out yet another issue with the Wii U being underpowered or underequipped.
The system currently has a less than acceptable number of systems in the wild, a price point not far removed from next gen systems, and a system less powerful than next gen and underequipped even compared to current gen. There is already a serious lack of 3rd party support. It truly begs the question whether or not the Wii U will succeed in the long term.
I'm really curious to see what happens.
Nintendo could potentially make a comeback a la 3DS, but it also may not.
I'm actually really curious to see what Nintendo's move might be if the Wii U has another unsuccessful year in it's second year out.
Will they pull the plug on the console and get to work on it's successor? Or will they continue to pour all of their resources into marketing the system and riding out a normal life cycle, say 5 years, as the article suggests?
With PS4 and Xbox One aiming to have 10 year life spans, I wonder how long the Wii U will be Nintendo's flagship system, and when they will release a successor.
I understand the Wii U's motives for not including a large hdd to keep cost down, but then it is impossible to implement mandatory installs because you cannot assuming even a single person will have an external hdd.
I understand Nintendo again went for a "new way to play" with the tablet, but then to keep costs down the system is now underpowered.
Furthermore it only supports one tablet, and it isn't even a multitouch screen.
Developers are skipping Wii U, and clearly gamers are as well.
As all Nintendo systems are great in their own way, the Wii U is as well. But I've not been compelled to buy one yet, and am not compelled to do so anytime soon. If others feel the same way and the system continues to struggle, what will Nintendo do? What do you think?
I'm holding off on Wii U for now, I want to see what happens with it. It's likely that a successor will be able to play Wii U games anyway, so if I miss the console entirely I'll likely be able to still play the games I miss on it.

To give my hope and opinion, I'd honestly rather see Nintendo ditch the system if it has another unsuccessful year. I'd rather see them start working right now on a system still uniquely Nintendo (incorporate Wii plus remotes, and perhaps even the tablet, and start selling an upgraded tablet as it's own device) but with a standard controller (the gamecube was one of the best, bring something new and unique! i.e. not the Wii U "pro" controller) and specs that will match Microsoft and Sony's offerings. Why? Because they could sell it at $400 like Sony, or even less. And because all of a sudden 3rd parties would have no reason to not include that system in their next gen titles. And because it gives a third option for consumers who want a powerful new system, AND Nintendo's library of incredible first party content.
Plus, if they released such a system 2 years into the life span of PS4/Xbone, it could still succeed and be on the shelf for 8 years, following the life cycles of those consoles.
Here is a more likely scenario.
Nintendo won't ditch the Wii U, but if it isn't quite successful than it's lifespan will be cut short, maybe 4 or 5 more years.
By then though, the PS4/Xbone will have been out for 4-5 years, halfway through their lifespans.
It might be too little too late for Nintendo to release an equal system at that time, and such a console might only see a 4 or 5 year life span, similar to the Wii U. That's way too short for new consoles to be on the market given the investment such a product costs.
I'd say Nintendo needs to act swiftly and decisively if they were to bring in another system, and do it sooner than later.
Sure it might be a shot in the foot of Wii U owners, but it's honestly not that bad. Maybe Wii U owners could get a discount or special edition or some such thing.
Nintendo is safe from failure, though. Unlike SEGA with the Dreamcast, Nintendo can afford a failed system and simply take another crack at it.
They just need to act quickly, and not let the system bleed them dry for more then two years.
Thoughts?

Even if the worst came to the worst and wii u continued to bomb regardless, I don't see nintendo effectively turning around and saying "we've screwed up so bad we're going to have to give this 8th gen console thing another go"

Or, the lack thereof. Now hear me out here because the details aren't what you think they are.

See, Wii U is no different from the philosophy behind Wii in that it knows it's no PlayStation or Xbox and it doesn't care. For Wii, this wasn't a problem. Sales were through the roof for 4 straight years with Wii and it ended up being a cultural icon in the industry, shortcomings and comparisons to PS360 be damned.

But now Wii U is here, with all the same Wii-like 'I don't care what the other guys are doing' antics that in part get highlighted in today's Talking Point. One thing is for sure about Wii U: the Wii, it is not. There is no PS2 level of GOTTA HAVE IT sales numbers. There's not even Gamecube like sales numbers. All the 'I don't care' antics now just look like stubborn, dated, misguided decisions. Nintendo has made their gaming bed, now they have to lay in it.

Alright well I am not going to read all that, sorry, but here is an idea. Wii U could become the Indie Machine. Better quality games than OUYA or other Micro-Consoles but Developers don't have to spend as much to make their games "next-gen" and stand out in the crowd. We have already seen the uprising on Kickstarter for Wii U support. Indies have a real console to put games out for and bigger companies have a cheaper console to develop for. Wii U has an opportunity to bring in a new Era of Console Gaming by being a less powerful system, lets see if Gamers are ready for it or if Nintendo is too far ahead of the competition... at least that is my thought on the whole thing

People keep saying the Xbox One doesn't have Backwards Compatibility.
I don't think they know what Backwards Compatibility means...

I really think people need to wait until after the holiday season, and even into 2014 to judge the system. The 3DS had a similar start so anything is possible, especially with the great lineup of games coming out for the Wii U. Only time will tell, but I expect it to fall slightly above the Game Cube in terms of success and popularity. Third Parties may ignore it, but with Nintendo's strong first-party and some partnerships, Wii U could just take off.

Thats alot of different questions and points you bring up. I think the best way to look at this from my point of view:

After saving for a decade because my single dad had to suuport two kids, and money was very tight, I bought my first console on a winter day in 1998. It was an N64. I was able to pick up Turok 2 and WCW/NWO Revenge, and my sister and I had so much fun playing. I never really thought if this was a bad investment, or if there were more games coming or any of that. I was just waiting to gather with my friends so we could play his Goldeneye. My point is, don't worry yourself about this stuff. Whatever system you have, enjoy it. Enjoy whatever games you have. Cherish it.

the WiiU will become my next home console when I get the money! that's what will become of th WiiU

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i must say wii u is still on top form for me and many like me . we as all Nintendo player like 1 thing that to play games not to look at cg and say mines the best that's baby talk so realy we should cherish what we have like back in the day s

You lost me a few sentences in when you kept implying that the Wii U is not a next gen console.

Wii outsold the competition.
DS outsold the competition.
3DS is currently outselling the competition by nearly 20x.

People need to get off this "Durr hardware derpa derp" kick. That's not the issue. Raw power, historically, has rarely been the selling point of any generation.

The issue is games. Nintendo is sitting on a mountain of some of the best and highest selling IP of all time. They just need to get it to the consumer.

Thing is though that even if the Wii U turns around and sells 100 million copies, these so-called analysts and experts still won't shut up. Nintendo has turned a profit in all but one fiscal year in the last 20 years. No other console company has come close to matching Nintendo's track record. It's not a contest. Nintendo systems have outsold both Sony and Microsoft combined, but they're still everybody's favorite punching bag.

From what I can gather it's not what a system have, but how one can make use of it. A few (or many by internet microphone) gamers complain about cost and storage space but if they look into it, they'll probably find it more cost efficient and handy then if it was bulit-in/included. Publishers complain about Wii U software sales but release month old ports and limited features. If you put in the effort, it will show.

I do feel the Wii U was rushed because of low Wii releases and if it was release this year, many games and features would be more polished since developers would have more time to get use to the new system. At this point in time, I'll wait until 2014 to make a real judgement only because the PS4 and Xbox one haven't been released yet.

A dying animal struggles, thrashes and howls in protest as its life torn from it. To see this in action, watch Animal Planet. The same thing happens when a video game is or isn't released. To see this in action, stay here.

Depends on how sales go in the next six months. There really hasnt been that much reason to buy a Wii U in terms of exclusives. Finally some quality titles are coming out on a consistent basis from now through April- plus some others, likely.

Best case scenario: Nintendo takes advantage of what 3rd party games actually succeed on Wii U to establish its own identity instead of trying to crawl to publishers trying to make games impossible to make a profit and elevates 3rd parties like Platinum to mainstream success, thus making the lack of EA or whoever ultimately irrelevant (which would be for the best for gaming as a whole, if true).
Worst case scenario: Nintendo and indie box

I'd guess somewhere in between those two.

Beyond Good and Evil 2 better be happening! In the meanwhile though, here's a fun little Let's Play of the original. Think you'll like the game if you like Zelda!LeT's PlAy BEYOND GOOD AND EVIL < Link to LP

The Wii U will basically be what the N64 was: a machine to play games published by Nintendo. It looks like 3rd parties are going to pretty much abandon the machine as time goes on and as games get more and more optimized for the PS4 and Xbox One. Heck, you can see it now, with games like Final Fantasy XV, Kingdom Hearts 3, Witcher 3, etc. not going to the system. Imagine what it will be like in 3 years.

The price point isn't doing the Wii U any favors, either. It's basically $50 less than a PS4, and it is:
A) Significantly less powerful, resulting in the aforementioned lack of 3rd party games that will be available in the future
B) Lacking in the online prowess of the completion's devices made in 2005-2006. Not being able to directly invite a friend to a game is ridiculous. The fact that it's all hidden in Miiverse is also really hurting it. I should know if a friend is trying to contact me while I'm playing a game. And don't get me started on the lack of a proper account system.
C) Pretty much only a device for games, whereas the PS4 (and XBOne, of course) is a multimedia device.

@CaviarMeths Hardware is important when it prevents developers from making the games they want to make. Look at the Nintendo 64's insistence on cartridges or the Gamecube's lack of online (besides 4 games) as proof. Lack of 3rd party games for both systems (especially the former. The Gamecube didn't suffer as much from that problem, but it was still clearly affected) was a major problem, making them basically Nintendo-only machines.

Also, from what I can tell, the reason why Nintendo has always posted a profit is because they've always had their lucrative, bread-and-butter handhelds supporting them. Think about it; the Gameboy uplifted the lack of success from the N64, and the GBA helped Nintendo while the Gamecube underperformed. If Nintendo just made home consoles, I don't know if they would have lasted long enough to get the bonafide success known as the Wii out there.

Agreed on price points being important. That's actually a big reason why Nintendo has had such success with their portables; they're always cheap. They sacrificed power in exchange for a cheap price point and a long battery life for the Game Boy, and it worked well for them. That's pretty much why the GBA and DS were also successful (besides good games, of course. That's a given).

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I think the OP is on to something as far as the Wii U's life cycle. I don't think the Wii U will have any mainstream relevance in 2019-2020 in order to have a 7-8 year life cycle. I think E3 2015, maybe 2016 they'll have to announce a new home console & release it by holiday 2016. Now IF Sony & Microsoft release another console in the future it'll probably be in 2020 (7 year cycle) at the earliest. Were that to happen, who believes a 2016 Nintendo home console would be able to play ANY games that a 2020 Sony/Microsoft console could? So that would either perpetually keep Nintendo behind the 8-ball or force them to release a 3rd console between 2012 and 2020. That doesn't bode well for the most economic of the home console makers. Nintendo fans would have to pay from $900-$1,050 on consoles alone. In other words, they have to get out from behind the 8-ball.

The Wii U will basically be what the N64 was: a machine to play games published by Nintendo. It looks like 3rd parties are going to pretty much abandon the machine as time goes on and as games get more and more optimized for the PS4 and Xbox One. Heck, you can see it now, with games like Final Fantasy XV, Kingdom Hearts 3, Witcher 3, etc. not going to the system. Imagine what it will be like in 3 years.

The price point isn't doing the Wii U any favors, either. It's basically $50 less than a PS4, and it is:
A) Significantly less powerful, resulting in the aforementioned lack of 3rd party games that will be available in the future
B) Lacking in the online prowess of the completion's devices made in 2005-2006. Not being able to directly invite a friend to a game is ridiculous. The fact that it's all hidden in Miiverse is also really hurting it. I should know if a friend is trying to contact me while I'm playing a game. And don't get me started on the lack of a proper account system.
C) Pretty much only a device for games, whereas the PS4 (and XBOne, of course) is a multimedia device.

@CaviarMeths Hardware is important when it prevents developers from making the games they want to make. Look at the Nintendo 64's insistence on cartridges or the Gamecube's lack of online (besides 4 games) as proof. Lack of 3rd party games for both systems (especially the former. The Gamecube didn't suffer as much from that problem, but it was still clearly affected) was a major problem, making them basically Nintendo-only machines.

Also, from what I can tell, the reason why Nintendo has always posted a profit is because they've always had their lucrative, bread-and-butter handhelds supporting them. Think about it; the Gameboy uplifted the lack of success from the N64, and the GBA helped Nintendo while the Gamecube underperformed. If Nintendo just made home consoles, I don't know if they would have lasted long enough to get the bonafide success known as the Wii out there.

Agreed on price points being important. That's actually a big reason why Nintendo has had such success with their portables; they're always cheap. They sacrificed power in exchange for a cheap price point and a long battery life for the Game Boy, and it worked well for them. That's pretty much why the GBA and DS were also successful (besides good games, of course. That's a given).

I mostly agree but what you say is not entirely true, each Nintendo home console baring Virtual boy has seen significant profit. This is because in addition to economical marketing and manufacturing costs each hardware unit was sold at a profit. The impressive sales for handhelds has always helped overall Nintendo profit but never had to cover for consoles (unlike what the 3DS is doing now).

For the sake of comparison both Sony and Microsoft gaming divisions in the last couple of generations have seen little to no profit despite their high hardware sales. MS's cash cow for Xbox is X-box Live which is why Sony are pushing PSN+ next year.

To answer the OP, i believe the Wii U will see some of the best games of this generation, even If it continues to preform as it is we can still expect at least another 4 years of 1st party releases. I expect the Wii U will ultimately follow the Wii and become a companion console for either X1,PS4 or PC owners.

I dunno... I'm glad my Wii U is not another one of the playbox's that I have to pay online for, that has a similar controller to the one I have been using for the last 10 years, and still need the TV for.

@Ryno as the needs & requests of the Nintendo online community expand the price to provide the infrastructure will grow. So Nintendo will have to charge for online, dig into profits, or not expand their infrastructure to the needs & wants of their consumers. And unfortunately, if Nintendo doesn't continue efforts to expand & update their online infrastructure devs & pubs may feel Nintendo's online may not meet their standards. Either sink, swim, or tread water. As far as needing a tv to play games. You do know most gamers want to play hd games in hd, if & when possible, that is.

So Nintendo will have to charge for online, dig into profits, or not expand their infrastructure to the needs & wants of their consumers.

I think that Nintendo wants to give developers and publishers the control over their own Online infrastructure to match more of what PC is like.That way they can keep it being free and leave it up the devs and publishers. That is just a thought.

@uptownsoul: They day Nintendo becomes one of them is the day I quit playing Nintendo. Also, Off-TV Play is fantastic for those of us who have a family and want to share their big beauitful HD TV with them.

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